Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Tatiana Matthews. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Tatiana, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Looking back, what’s an important lesson you learned at a prior job?

I would say one of the most important lessons \experiences I had in a job that has helped me as a business owner is providing great customer service. Prior to owning my business, I was employed by a major online hotel booking site. Sometimes the calls and request were easy to deal with, and other times they made you want to pull your hair out. When dealing with customers you never know what type of encounter you are going to have. All we know is that they are requesting some type of help. While working for the 3rd party booking site there were a lot of things that could negatively impact their trip. For example, the hotels do not have the reservation, they are overbooked, the guest was overcharged or the guest was not given the room they booked, to name a few. These situations were totally out of the guest control. Then you have those occasions where the guest was totally at fault. Booked at the wrong hotel, cancelled outside the free cancellation policy or the guest booked a room without reading the policies and this has caused an inconvenience during their stay. The bottom line is the customer is looking for a solution regardless if they are wrong or right. And that was my job, to find a solution, keep the customer happy and still follow company guidelines. I’ve grown to learn that customers do not want to hear what they should have done or why it’s their fault. They want to hear how you can help, a possible solution offer or sense of empathy if needed. While working there I realized how valuable customers were to the business. Without customers I wouldn’t have had a job that allowed me to be a provider outside of work. I say all this to say customers are a huge deal, especially in small business. Although ,some may be hard to deal with, they keep us up and running. So when faced with a difficult customer I always listen to understand and not to respond. I will always give an empathy statement if needed while acknowledging their complaint or issue. I try to focus on something that I can do to rectify the issue without hurting my business rather than point out their errors. I feel this goes a long way and could potentially build
relationships with customers. More than likely this will be a story they can tell someone on how they messed up, but overall how great you were and this is why they continue to do business with you and refer others.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi, my name is Tatiana Matthews, born and raised in Michigan. I’m a mother of three and Owner and CEO of My Alter Ego Closet. I adore fashion and heavy on self care and feeling fabulous. Beside the closet, I have 2 active Facebook groups that are all about women empowerment and feeling fabulous. One is titled Beauties in Business. This group is currently at 6k+ members and growing. Within this group you can learn all things makeup from beginner to advanced. As well as promote your business and view other small business.
My next group is titled Rich Aunties who brunch GR. In this group we meet once a month for some fun girl time. We dress for the occasion and turn heads whenever we go! We have been established for over 2 years now and are always looking for other ladies to join.

My Alter Ego Closet is my newest business. It began as a small business operating from the basement of my home. Since then we have successfully flourished from the basement to a warehouse and now our physical location. My boutique doesn’t just sell clothes, but celebrates every woman’s right to feel beautiful, confident, and included in a luxurious space. My Alter Ego Closet boutique isn’t just a store; it’s a destination for luxury, elegance, encouragement and empowerment.

The story behind My Alter Ego Closet began when I tragically lost my oldest child in a car accident in May of 2020. The loss of my daughter took me into a deep depression, I only found happiness in dressing up and makeup.
When I was dressed up, it was like a blockage from my pain and a way to cope with my depression. I felt good, and I looked good. When people would see me dressed up, conversations changed from “Sorry for your loss” to “You look cute; where did you get that from.” This was my way to somewhat control those unwanted conversations. It was just something about getting dressed up that masked the unwanted conversations.

When dressed up, I felt back to myself. People saw the old me again; people saw, my alter ego. As women we get lost in our daily standard activities that we sometimes lose ourselves while taking care of others and making uncomfortable situations feel comfortable.

At My Alter Ego Closet, we desire to create a unique experience with each customer. Our goal is to have each customer feeling rejuvenated and fashionable. We also aim to give others an undeniable reason to stare as we strut in our My Alter Ego Closet attire. We make it easy not to be basic while embracing a way to obtain self-care.

My Alter Ego Closet is not your average boutique. It was designed to replicate a woman’s luxury walk-in closet.
We have a fabulous shoe room, chandeliers, and a wine station offering complimentary spirits.(21+). We offer online booking slots which reserves a 45 minute private shopping time. When a shopping slot is booked the store is closed for you and up to 3 guest. This way someone can feel comfortable when shopping and not have the additional crowd.

My Alter Ego Closet carries sleek evening gowns to tailored separates, footwear, and statement accessories, each item in our collection is designed to elevate your style with captivating charm. Our dedicated stylists are committed to providing personalized attention, ensuring that you find pieces that not only flatter your figure, but also resonate with your individual taste and lifestyle.

We source our products from renowned designers who share our dedication to excellence, This ensures that every piece in our boutique reflects the highest standards of design and quality.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

I would say the most effective strategy for growing my clientele is realizing that I can not do it all. With social media being the number 1 marketing source I realized that I needed a team. As I out grew my basement my business presence needed to grow with me as well. With a bigger space more responsibilities landed on my plate. I was not an expert in content creation nor was I staying consistent in my marketing. For me it took to much time to learn while being self taught. It seemed as if once I learned one trend another one has already started. This was when I realized I was wearing to many hats and some things had to change. Task were getting half way done or not done as I was spread so thin. So I hired a PR team. This team took a lot of my plate which allowed me to focus my craft where I had the most knowledge. They have been able to keep up with my email marketing, the consistent editing of my website and manage my marketing analytics. I feel that having a team is essential for growth.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

Be clear on expectations and always be fair and ethical. Put people in a position that they enjoy doing verses one that they have to do. Doing something that they enjoy gets you better results. Be open to change, suggestions, and value their input. Acknowledge your team when things have gone well and set realistic goals that can be achieved and celebrated. Always have an open door for your employees. I feel that if you are good to your employees then they will be good to you.

Contact Info:

• Website: myalteregocloset@gmail.com
• Instagram: myalteregocloset
• Facebook: https://Facebook.com/sadityshowoff
• Yelp: myalteregocloset
• Other: TIkToc: My Alter Ego ClosetWe are also accredited with the BBB.

Image Credits

VS2 Photography

Diamond Elite Magazine